Man denies knowledge at Vacaville murder trial

Believed to be an eyewitness to the July 2011 gunshot slaying of his friend, a former Vacaville resident testified in Solano County Superior Court on Thursday and vehemently denied knowing who the shooter was, despite being confronted with statements to the contrary.

Larry James was walking with his friend, Quinten Nears, 20, on the night of July 30, 2011, in the driveway of the Alamo Gardens apartment complex, headed to James' apartment. A man approached them and, seconds later, James found himself running for his life.

"We saw someone, he said, 'What's up?' to Quinten and Quinten said, 'What's up?' to him, and I walked a little while longer and I heard gunshots," James testified.

Prosecutors have charged Vacaville resident Rico Marquez Espitia, 22, with the murder of Nears. James' testimony came during the second full day of Espitia's jury trial. Prosecutors also believe the slaying to be gang-related and further allege that Espitia is a member of the Norteño criminal street gang.

Called to testify by Deputy District Attorney Julie Underwood, James testified that he did not know who the shooter was, while also making it clear he would never "snitch," even if it was his own brother who had been shot.

"I don't like dealing with police and I don't like dealing with this stuff, period," James testified.

When asked if he moved out of the apartment complex in the days following his friend's death out of fear of retaliation, James became angry. The line of questioning prompted James to proclaim he was not scared of anyone, and he even began threatening the defendant and his family members seated in the audience.

The profanity-laced tirade led Judge Donna Stashyn to clear the courtroom for several minutes as bailiffs stepped in to calm James down.

James' testimony was countered by that of Nears' mother, Joyce Thurman, who testified that James visited her in the days following her son's death.

She had never met James before but knew they were friends, and James proceeded to tell her what happened the night her son was killed.

"He said Rico came up and was walking kinda fast," Thurman testified.

She said that James told her that as he held a dying Nears, her son said, "I can't believe Rico shot me."

Despite being overcome with emotion when testifying about watching his friend die, James denied making the statements to Thurman.

Nears was hit by three bullets, believed to be fired from a .38-caliber revolver, and died at the scene.

A surprise came late on the first day of trial, when defense attorneys first learned that a handgun was recovered by Vacaville police and sent to the state Department of Justice for analysis.

According to discussions held outside the presence of the jury on Thursday, Vacaville police arrested a suspected Norteño gang associate in December 2011 with a Ruger .357-caliber handgun. The handgun was reportedly found in a creek behind the apartment complex where Nears was slain.

Bullets recovered from Nears' body at autopsy, along with the gun were sent to the DOJ for analysis, but the items were sent back to Vacaville police without being tested.

Such a weapon could fire a .38-caliber bullet.

Espitia's court-appointed defense counsel, Deputy Public Defender Sara Johnson, called the late discovery of evidence "appalling."

While Underwood claimed that the gun was likely of "marginal relevance," Stashyn agreed with Johnson's argument that it would be nearly impossible to do any meaningful testing of the weapon and bullets in the midst of trial.

Stashyn ordered the attorneys back at 8:30 a.m. today to further discuss the issue.

Espitia has pleaded not guilty and remains in Solano County Jail custody.